Shannon Sharpe did his best Switzerland impression as Amanda Seales blasted FS1’s Emmanuel Acho for his recent Angel Reese take.
Seales appeared on the latest episode of Club Shay Shay, and after a conversation about Candace Owens, Sharpe brought up Reese getting criticized for crying as she discussed being the victim of online bullying during her final postgame press conference with LSU.
“Angel Reese is a young person. Do you know how disgusting that is?” – Amanda Seales
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“She is a young person! Do you know how disgusting that is?” Seales interjected before referring to Acho as the n-word. “That cornball…who loves to make himself look like he’s the white people’s savior.”
Sharpe initially pleaded ignorance. “Who said that?” Sharpe asked, prompting Seales to say, “Emmanuel Acko [sic]…’ Come talk to me, white people, I’m the Black guy that’s nice.’ Cut it out! It’s ridiculous.”
“Oh lord, have mercy,” Sharpe said as he fell over in his seat and put his head down in his hand. “Man, I know these people.”
Sharpe was Acho’s colleague at FS1 until the Club Shay Shay host parted ways with Skip Bayless and Undisputed. Acho was even considered an early candidate to replace Sharpe on Undisputed before FS1 opted to pair Bayless with a rotating cast of debate partners led by Keyshawn Johnson.
“Well, you’re not saying it; I am,” Seales added. “And I will let you off the hook. You don’t need to respond. Don’t feel like you need to defend them.”
The “disgusting” take Seales was referring to came earlier this month when Acho responded to Reese’s tearful press conference by offering what he considered to be a “gender-neutral, racially indifferent take.”
“You can’t be the big, bad wolf but then kind of cry like Courage the Cowardly Dog,” Acho said. “You can’t under any circumstance go to the podium and now try to ask individuals to give you sympathy. No one has sympathy for the villain. You painted the bullseye on your back; why are you surprised when people shoot at you?”
There didn’t appear to be any malicious intent from Acho with the take, but he garnered public scrutiny for ignoring Reese’s race and gender and the racist misogyny Black women in sports can face. The polarizing FS1 host can now add Seales to his list of critics, but Sharpe withdrew from engaging in the uncomfortable conversation. However, Sharpe’s attempt at playing Switzerland didn’t stop Club Shay Shay from using Seales’ rant against Acho as the episode’s teaser.
